:rolleyes: Hi we just adopted a goffin last night from a local pet store that was neglected by the owners that used the poor thing at a furniture store. I have many questions. By the way she is very loving and likes to stay outside her cage. She seams very loving and like to be held. She has plucked out alot of her feathers, I mean so much she looks like a new born at the age a just a few weeks. She is 4 to 5 years old. I have 3 sun conures and they seam very curious to see her. Could I run into problems letting them get to know each other? Also do goffins like water and should I put a bowl in her cage or do they like to be sprayed with water?

Congratulations on your new addition to the flock. Are your Conures flighted? If so they will be able to get away from the Goffin if she gets aggressive. Since the Goffin is larger than the Sun Conures she could more easily hurt them. You will have to observe their interaction to see if it is safe. It might or might not be. The local parrot rescue ( Foster Parrots ) has a Goffin that seeks out other birds and will kill them. This forces them to keep her in a cage when not interacting with someone. If they can interact safely this will be a good thing for everyone as they will be able to entertain each other.

I bring our U2 into the shower with me a couple times a week. It helps reduce the amount of dust that he gives off. Shower or misting is healthy for birds. Most really enjoy getting misted with a spray bottle.

The feather plucking may have been the result of being bored and will stop once she interacts with you and the rest of the flock.

Thanks for your help. All info is invited. I love all my animals and really need help with this one. I think. I tried to mist her and she ran to her cage like she was in trouble. I tried to get her in the shower with my daughter and no way was she going for that one. Now what do I try? Another thing is getting her to step up and get on my hand or arm. Is this for cockatoo also? I have sun conures and the oldest learned to step up onto a stick so he will not bite me. Can I somehow teach her to do the same? Thanks for your help.Kari

Hi Kari:Congratulations on your new addition to your family.Goffins are wonderful birds and I think that they are adorable.You are having problems with the shower, you can try a few things. The first thing I would try is to just sit in the bathroom with her and reassure her that she is okay. I would do this until she is okay with going into the bathroom. The second thing that I would do is to bring her into the bathroom and start running the water. Once she gets comfortable with that, then bring in her perch and have her sit on her perch while you are showering and talk to her while you are in the shower. The final step is to bring her from her perch into the shower. I talk to Sophie and tell her to step up when I am in the shower. I will shower with Sophie and she loves the contact. Note: Make sure the nails are short :rolleyes: Hope this helps. just take it slow and hopefully you will have a showering cockatoo soon that loves to sing.

My U2 was also afraid of the water bottle,(I'm sure at one time) he was sprayed with a water bottle to shut him up )I started by misting my own hair and singing a silly song,when he got relaxed I let some mist fall on him .I set the bottle on mist and point it up and let the water fall down on him.It took a while but now he spreads his wings and fans his tail a soon as I start to sing(the more off key the better !)

KARI,I HAVE HAD A GOFFIN SINCE HE WAS 14 WEEKS OLD. I EVEN HAD TO WEAN HIM AND HE CRIED LIKE A BABY. HE HATES TO HAVE A BATH SO I TAKE HIM IN THE BATHROOM EVERY MORNING WHEN I SHOWER AND LEAVE HIM ON THE COUNTER OR ON TOP OF THE SHOWER DOORS AND A COUPLE OF TIMES A WEEK HE "ASKS" TO PLAY IN THE WATER. I HOPE YOUR GOFFIN LEARNS TO TRUST YOU AFTER AWHILE, IT TAKES LOTS OF PATIENCE. WE WERE GIVEN A MOLLUCCAN THAT WAS NEGLECTED AND IT HAS BEEN A MONTH NOW. SHE IS GETTING BETTER BUT SHE SURE DOESN'T TRUST ME YET. HER BEHAVIOR IS UNPREDICTABLE SOMETIMES. I JUST TALK TO HER AND LET HER GET FRIENDLY AT HER OWN PACE. GOOD LUCK!

Hi and Congrats on your new family member. We have 3 Goffins and they are my hubby's favorite species.

Compared to our other 'toos, Goffins are much more inquisitive, energetic and rambunctious. They like lots of space to run around and actually like to wrestle with our hands on the bed. (where we flip them on their back and tickle their tummy). They also quickly learned a few tricks: they hop like bunnies, and do "eagle" imitations.

They also LOVE anything with soft rubbery buttons. I get old remotes, phones and computer keyboards from the goodwill. These $1 items are their favorite toys.

Goffins commonly pluck the contour feathers off their chests, leaving only the soft peachy down. I think it's because they have so much nervous energy. And as far as bathing goes... some love it and some hate it. It just depends. For the ones who hate it, I use a bottle that makes such a fine mist, they don't even know they're getting misted.

You may want to do what we do - each morning when husband is getting ready we take our M2 into the bathroom and let him run up and down the shower curtain rod. He lets us know if he wants to shower or not. It took a little while and this allows him to watch and make the decision about getting wet on his own. My husband talks to him during the shower and Rico displays back. He LOVES the blow dryer - sometimes I think he showers just to get blown dried LOL

The one thing I have to ask is regarding your sun conures. You ARE quarantining this new bird, right? You HAVE done at least a preliminary vet check with bloodwork, right? 30 days quarantine is an absolute minimum for any bird, with every possible precaution taken to minimize airflow and contact between your new bird and the others.

As for allowing the birds to get together, perhaps I have odd ideas, but NONE of my guys plays with any of the others, with the exception of the two who were handfed and weaned together and who came to our home with the promise they'd stay together forever. I feel that the risk outweighs the potential good when mixing different sizes/species of birds. I know it works for others but that's my opinion.